Stevivor's Reviews
Rather than sticking to its guns, Battlefield 6 diverges from the formula. We could have had a steaming hot meal of scrumptious all-out warfare, but instead we’ve been served a lukewarm plate of I-Can’t-Believe-It’s-Not-CoD.
If you’re a fan of Little Nightmares, or similar games in this genre — and, are willing to overlook some pretty loose design — then you’ll find enjoyment in this; a $60 AUD price point also helps. Otherwise, you’re better off steering clear, or engaging with other co-op titles like It Takes Two. If you’re on the fence, a demo is available, though it doesn’t offer progression into the main game proper.
Let’s just hope that when Super Mario 3D All-Stars Deluxe arrives for the 50th anniversary on Switch 3, it combines all of these games and more with the proper remastering they may not actually need, but definitely deserve.
If you like to dabble in Alien games and haven’t played Alien Isolation as yet, I’d recommend that over this. If you’re a true Alien fan and happen to love VR, grab that version of Rogue Incursion instead. If you’re still reading, don’t have VR, and don’t mind a $45 AUD price tag, then this one is for you, warts and all.
All up, LEGO Party is a worthy contender to Mario Party; you’ll need to decide if its strengths and weaknesses appeal to you. With noticeable framerate drops during fly-throughs, even on PS5 Pro, I’m also a bit concerned about how this will actually play on a Switch.
Know what you’re in for, and pull the trigger accordingly; though kudos to publisher Cult Games for setting this at a very digestible $60 AUD price point. I had a blast setting things to easy in order to blow through the lion’s share of its story (as in I missed a side mission or two) in roughly 6 or 7 hours.
And love Baby Steps I did. There are few ways this game could better achieve its aims; in what it is trying to be Baby Steps approaches perfection. Whether what it is trying to be is for you, well that depends on if you feel that a rapturous level of self satisfaction is worth braving a storm of intense frustration and inconsolable rage. For those with the resolve (or stubbornness, or self loathing, or masochism), you won’t find a better test of all of them than Baby Steps. If you have the resilience of a damp tissue and capacity for frustration of a tired toddler, keep on walking by
Silent Hill f balances threat and reality in a way that kept me playing longer and longer per session.
Dead Reset has something of a consistency problem when it relates to special effects, storylines, and acting — though I need to commend Daniel Thrace for a very strong performance as Cole — but that all comes together to nail the feeling of a B-grade horror film. Again, that’s a compliment; it’s giving off a pre-Disney Doctor Who vibe.
Hockey is family. Hockey is life. Hockey is a source of joy. NHL 26, less so. For all the good it does, this is an off year; this is certainly no NHL 17. I hoped for more.
While it may not be up there with the likes of Dead Space, Resident Evil, and Silent Hill, Cronos The New Dawn is still survival horror done well. Fans of the genre should absolutely give this one a go.
Ultimately, Metal Eden is a close to a great game, but falls flat. It’s short, repetitive, and gets in its own way when it comes to a core combat loop. If you’re on the fence with this one, I’d heartily suggest that you check out demos here on PC, here on Xbox, and here on PlayStation.
If you’ve played before, the low price point should be enough to either sell you on playing the updated first game and bolstering your digital collation or simply turn you off. There is around 90 minutes of new gameplay compared to the original but if you don’t want to shell out $50 AUD for that, this isn’t for you.
Shinobi Art of Vengeance is a fantastic start to Sega’s Next Level program, and one that’s easy to recommend. Priced at a budget-conscious $48 AUD and offering around 15 or so hours of gameplay, fans of the franchise or the likes of The Lost Crown will certainly dig this.
While nothing that The Rogue Prince of Persia offers is genre-defining, its pieces combine into an experience as rich as the Persian kingdom itself.
Ultimately, this will be at the mercy of two things: how Nintendo supports the title (and its online experience), and how quickly players learn and adapt to its meta. In the case of Rematch, it’s been quite rocky. I hope that Drag x Drive goes otherwise.
Mafia The Old Country, visually, is a stunning success. Unfortunately… gameplay is best described as mediocre; serviceable, if not particularly enjoyable. Its story is a tragedy -- dull, linear, and so full of tropes that nothing feels new or fresh. Characters are flat cliches, generic representations of genre stereotypes, and nothing more.
When things are working, Ready or Not can be a lot of fun. The problem, is, Ready or Not rarely works, either as expected, as intended, or as I’d like it to. Some may enjoy its edginess, and others may find a completely different experience engaging in multiplayer. I’m frankly too concerned about toxicity from what I’ve heard in single-player to dabble in this exercise with randoms on mics.
Super Mario Party Jamboree Switch 2 Edition + Jamboree TV is a clever way to add fresh content to a recent multiplayer favourite, without coercing anyone to buy the more expensive edition just because they’re playing on Switch 2.
This is a true must-have for Batman fans — so much so that I am tempted to go drop my Arkham VR score down so, so many pegs — and even more of one if you’ve already got a Meta Quest 3S or Meta Quest 3.